Driver Slams Into Pottawatomie County Deputy Responding To Accident

A driver crashes into a Pottawatomie County deputy, sending him to the hospital. The sheriff's office says the deputy was responding to another accident at the time.

“The only thing I remember is zooming in on my computer to where we were at and that was it,” recalls Deputy Richard Finch.

Finch says he was assisting another deputy with a car accident Wednesday night along Highway 177 and MacArthur Street when his SUV was hit by another driver on the side of the road near the median. “I came to, kind of, on the ground and I was like ‘what is going on,’ my chest hurt a little bit,” he said. “I was still trying to process what had happened and I started seeing my stuff that was in the car, outside of the car.” 

Undersheriff Travis Dinwiddie said when the driver clipped the car, the force of the impact sent Deputy Finch into the cable barriers and onto the ground. “It could have been way worse, he was very fortunate,” said Undersheriff Dinwiddie. “One of the good things, his vest, that helped take a lot of the brunt of the impact and helped protect his upper torso.” 

Treated and released, Deputy Finch walked away from this one, returning to his vehicle to see the aftermath. “Everything deployed, I was sick,” Deputy Finch said. “Looking back on it, I was actually more worried about the car at that point than myself.”

As for the driver who crashed into him, he amazingly survived too. According to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the driver was not arrested, and the crash is still under investigation. However, the accident shows the dangers emergency responders face when out on the roads.

 “When we were out there that evening, we had multiple deputies out there directing traffic and it's just amazing at the amount of people that still don't slow down enough,” Undersheriff Dinwiddie said. “Move over and slow down, and that guy, there's no way he did either,” said Deputy Finch.

 Deputy Finch said he was sore and only suffered some bumps and bruises. He is off work recovering but said he is ready to get back on the job as soon as possible.